Chapter 479 – Extra: The Amicable Empress and Emperor

Chapter 479 - Extra: The Amicable Empress and Emperor

Looking at Lady Ruan wiping away her tears, Xiao Jiu sighed and chuckled. "What are you crying about? It's not like this is the first time Mother is leaving, nor is she not coming back."

"I-I just don't know when she'll return. I-I... I'm just so reluctant to part. Mother always..."

"Alright, alright. You're the Empress; is it appropriate for you to cry like this?" Xiao Jiu helplessly wiped away her tears. "Come on, let's head back to the palace."

Lady Ruan nodded.

Both of them were dressed in white, so it wouldn't be proper for them to stay out too long.

Inside the carriage, Lady Ruan wiped away her tears. "Did I look really ugly while crying?"

"What do you think?" Xiao Jiu shook his head. "You're now the mother of three children. Including the other kids, how many children's mother are you now? Why do you cry so easily?"

"How can you say that? I don't cry all the time. I was just reluctant to part with Mother," Lady Ruan said, now calm.

"Hmmph, compared to you, I seem more like the son-in-law," Xiao Jiu said, shaking his head.

"The Emperor is a man, after all, and it's different for him," the Empress chuckled.

Xiao Jiu gave her a few appraising glances. She thought to herself that this Empress was truly remarkable in every way, except for her excessive attachment to her mother.

This year, Lady Ran was thirty years old.

After giving birth to the First Princess in the Eastern Palace, she had subsequently given birth to three more princesses.

While her mother claimed that the gender of a child mainly depended on the father, Xiao Jiu didn't entirely believe this. She felt that her mother was simply an exceptionally gentle person.

However, whenever the Empress mentioned this, the Emperor would become inexplicably speechless.

Xiao Jiu couldn't help but wonder why the Emperor found himself at a loss for words.

Now, Xiao Jiu herself was a mother to several children. Four princes and three princesses.

It was quite unusual, indeed.

Concubines bear princes, while the Empress bears princesses.

The First Prince's birth mother was once the Eastern Palace's virtuous concubine, Lady Wu. She was fiery in nature but also sensible.

She was granted the title of Zhaoyi and, over the years, ascended to the rank of Shufei.

The Second Prince's birth mother was a Gentleman of the Eastern Palace in her time and is now a concubine.

The Third Prince's birth mother was a woman who entered the palace through the first imperial selection after the enthronement. She is now a Jiaoyu.

The birth mother of the Fourth Prince was also chosen in her first imperial selection and is now a Concubine of Grace.

Currently, there are two consorts in the palace who are with child, leaving everyone wondering about the genders of their offspring.

Perhaps due to the Empress's special favor from the Empress Dowager, who rarely visits, the Emperor holds the Empress in both high esteem and deep affection.

Even without an Imperial Prince, her position is as solid as a mountain.

Though Concubine Shu has the Imperial Eldest Son and favor, she is indeed a remarkable person.

She would never overstep her boundaries.

With her in control, the other consorts with imperial sons wouldn't dare to overstep either.

The Empress could still bear children, and so could she. As long as His Majesty favored her, there would be an imperial son eventually.

Of course, if there were no children after a few more years, Ninth Miss would have to consider the other imperial sons.

Ninth Miss genuinely liked Ruan Shi from the bottom of her heart.

Ruan Shi was an intriguing person. Her temperament was different from Yun Li's, but her methods of managing the harem were just as effective.

Yun Li had a formidable personality, and few dared to provoke her easily.

Ruan Shi, on the other hand, exerted her influence subtly and quietly. Over the years, she had consolidated all the power in the harem. Whenever anyone spoke of her, they would say that Empress Consort was a kind-hearted person.

Even someone as hot-tempered as Lady Shu was a loyal supporter of the Empress.

As for the concubines, with Noble Consort leading the way, they never caused trouble for the Empress.

For His Majesty, Nuansi's care was like the gentle rain that nourishes without being noticed.

With Xiao Jiu's fiery temper, she indeed needed such a wife by her side.

If Nuansi had a personality similar to Yun Li, their relationship with the emperor would probably not have been as harmonious.

Perhaps this was what they called complementary traits?

Upon returning to the palace, Nuansi arrived at Fengyi Palace, where someone promptly reported to her.

"Your Highness, you're finally back. Today, Concubine Zhang and Concubine Yu had another argument. Concubine Yu claimed that Concubine Zhang upset her, causing her to be startled and endangering her pregnancy. She summoned the imperial physicians. It was quite a commotion. It just so happened that Her Excellency the Honorary Empress Dowager was appreciating flowers, and it gave her a fright."

Nuansi sighed. "What's the reason this time?"

"The servant thinks she was deliberately picking a fight. Concubine Zhang wasn't bothering her at all; she was simply enjoying the flowers. Concubine Yu went over to spout nonsense herself," grumbled the maid who accompanied Nuansi.

"Mind your words," the queen advised.

"Ai, it was my fault. But this Concubine Yu keeps using her pregnancy as an excuse to cause trouble every day. It's really..." Maid Ziyue sighed in exasperation.

"Let her nitpick if she wants to. She's already six months along; everything can only wait until after she gives birth." Princess Royal said coolly. "His Majesty wouldn't favor someone like that. She's so busy looking for others' faults that she doesn't even notice her own troubles. Since Concubine Zhang is innocent in today's matter, we'll send her some gifts. As for Noble Consort Yu, I'll pay her a visit tomorrow."

After all, she was an elder.

Moreover, her status was different, and one that she had always held in high regard.

As they spoke, Second Princess's maid, Pearl, arrived.

"Mother," Pearl cried out as soon as she entered. "Mother, Mother!"

"Slow down, child," Princess Royal chuckled. "What fun things do you have now? You never study properly when I ask you to read. Last time, when your father tested the four of you on your studies, you were the only one who failed. Isn't that embarrassing?"

The Empress truly doted on this child, but the child could also be truly vexing.

"It's fine. I'm not a real princess anyway. I'm just a princess from a principality. My three younger sisters are all so diligent, so it's good that I, the one who pretends to be a gem among them, am incompetent," Pearl said without a care.

"You, you. Where have you been?" the Empress asked.

"From Grandmother. She told me to tell you that there's no need to specially visit her. She isn't bothered by what happened today. She said she only heard half of it, that Consort Yu got angry because Father went to Concubine Zhang's place."

The Empress...

"How can the Honorable Consort talk to you about such matters? You're still just a child..."

This wasn't appropriate, and it seemed like it had started with the Honorable Consort, didn't it?

"Oh, what's there to be afraid of? I'm already fourteen. Sigh, you're so cautious, how could you not know about this sort of thing? A few years ago, I even eavesdropped on First Prince's birth mother, but unfortunately, I didn't hear anything." Pearl expressed her regret.

The Empress...

"You really are something, child. You mustn't mention this again in the future."

"Mmm-hmm, mmm-hmm. I told you, even though I'm not a princess, I was raised by Father Emperor and Mother Empress, so I have to maintain my image. Some people outside say that I still call them Mother Empress and Father Emperor just to get benefits. They're just jealous. Even if I were to stop calling them that and instead call them Uncle and Aunt, would I not receive any benefits?" Pearl dismissed their claims with disdain.

The Empress couldn't help but laugh; that was true.

When this child was young, due to frequently being sent to the palace, she had learned to address people by following the eldest princess's example.

She might have been a bit of a troublemaker, but she treated her three younger sisters better than anyone else.

It was always the princes he targeted, particularly the Crown Prince.

"His Majesty arrives!"

The announcement echoed outside, and Pearl rose to greet him.

"Auntie Pearl is here?" Little Nine was already accustomed to this.

Having been raised before his eyes, his niece was no different from his own flesh and blood.

Pearl chuckled. "I'll leave now that Father has come. You can have some alone time with Mother Empress."